Hybrid Mileage improvement with 100% ethanol-free gas

[Mavster Mechanic]

Corn planting over the last 100 years.
1925 to 2025

Ethanol changed very little.

In 2019 14% of US corn went into ethanol. 54% of US corn was exported.

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[Mavster Mechanic]

It's a good thing they don't use any fuel/oil to grow, fertilize, transport, cook, or pump the corn.

Good thing it costs nothing to ship pump and refine oil from Alaska or the middle east or the North Sea. Good thing no wars are fought over oil. Good thing no lives are lost over oil.

How many wars have been fought over ethanol? I forgot.

How many beaches have been closed from ethanol spills?

 

[Mavster Mechanic]

But Ethanol can’t be moved through a pipeline. It has to be hauled in tanker trucks that burn diesel. Doesn’t sound to me like it’s any more environmentally friendly

Sure it can. But I know in general they don't.

Final product diesel is moved by diesel burning trucks. Most final product gasoline is moved by diesel burning trucks.

Most ethanol is moved BY RAIL.

A national ad campaign by CSX said a ton ( approx 285 gallons ) of ethanol is transported 400 miles by one gallon of diesel in a locomotive.

Dang. Trains are efficient. Low friction wheels. Gentle grades. Massive tonnage moved per train.

 

[MattinFLA]

It depends more on the person, place, time, and weather than the fuel.

Mine on 10% ethanol.

60% highway. 40% city.

I can not get over 500 miles a tank a gas in my hybrid ethanol free gas when on the interstate, ever

 

[Mavster Mechanic]

I can not get over 500 miles a tank a gas in my hybrid ethanol free gas when on the interstate, ever

There's a whole other thread about big gains from slowing down, even just a little gives big results. Wind resistance is a bigger factor than lots of people believe.

50 MPG (700 mile tank) at 55 MPH.

Way less, like half that at 80 MPH.

 

[kevinmccune]

Alcohol has fewer btu's than gasoline. Less power, more fuel needed. Simple physics. Try to tell that to a farmer who has 2000 acres of corn.

to be truthful I have noticed no mpg degradation( never used straight gas that I can remember,remember mpg crashing when I had hi test in my Ecoboost,) people really need to take a deep breath and think( have used the 20% ethanol without any mileage decrease its only 10 % of the mix and beings it also has some btu content on its own it will not cras

Alcohol has fewer btu's than gasoline. Less power, more fuel needed. Simple physics. Try to tell that to a farmer who has 2000 acres of corn.

Its not going to be anywhere close to a 10% loss( simple bs) because while the alcohol is less calorific it also contains BTUs,,I could maybe believe 1-2% less mileage not 10% less don't see why it would make a great difference in a hybrid,I even use the 88 octane when available it doesn't bother the Ecoboost apparently,I call "consumer bias" I do agree its time for the taxpayer to stop paying for "big AG" to grow corn( btw hand calculate mileage-more accurate)

 

[wax87]

This list seems pretty outdated and misleading. E.g: In order to decrease the carbon load in fuel, it is illegal in Canada since 2022 to use gas that contains no alcohol, but there are plenty of stations incorrectly listed. The only place that I can think of that sells alcohol-free fuel for older small engines is Home Depot at $10/quart.

does it include the carbon load of producing the ethanol and/or reg gas?

 

[Aherpa]

I used to use ethanol in the winter for the de-icing properties but I stopped after I tried a full tank of regular gas. The truck makes far less clattering noise when using regular and that's enough for me to pay up for regular. I did the same thing in our Eco Edge.
Now I use a can of Sea Foam a few times throughout the winter to de-ice and for the rest of whatever magic it does. . .

 

[Pointyears]

The most important criterion to remember is it's easier to create a gallon of ethanol than it is a gallon of oil. Rumor has it the dinosaurs are out of business....

 

[grandpopa'sMPGs]

running a gas engine at 9 to 1 compression on E85 will get much lower MPGs than on pure gas How ever running an E85 engine with a 13 to 1 compression ratio will get even to better MPG's than the 9 to 1 gas. An Atkinson engine of 20-1 compression ratio will match a gas of 13-1 will run similarly efficient but the 20-1Atkin. and 13-1 gas are set up to run E85 and the other gas.

 

[Timothyd]

Good thing it costs nothing to ship pump and refine oil from Alaska or the middle east or the North Sea. Good thing no wars are fought over oil. Good thing no lives are lost over oil.

How many wars have been fought over ethanol? I forgot.

How many beaches have been closed from ethanol spills?

Yep, our present day rat race has gotten us to a hard spot. But, we could go on forever with this.

 

[dochawk]

The most important criterion to remember is it's easier to create a gallon of ethanol than it is a gallon of oil.

It is commonly mentioned that it takes more than a gallon of oil to make a gallon of ethanol.

What I haven't seen is a figure for how much oil is consumed to create a gallon of gasoline.

 

[Ryom]

It is commonly mentioned that it takes more than a gallon of oil to make a gallon of ethanol.

What I haven't seen is a figure for how much oil is consumed to create a gallon of gasoline.

42 gallon drum of crude refinement breakdown:

 

[Glen Baker LLC]

No ethanol free fuel in Nevada until April 1st.

 

[Mavster Mechanic]

It is commonly mentioned that it takes more than a gallon of oil to make a gallon of ethanol.

What I haven't seen is a figure for how much oil is consumed to create a gallon of gasoline.

It's commonly cited it takes 0.5 gallon of gasoline to put 1 gallon of gasoline at the pump in a best case scenario (modern refinery, lower transportation).
And it takes 0.75 gallon of gasoline to put 1 gallon of gasoline at the pump worst case scenario, old refinery, more transportation.

Ethanol production is about the same. Too close to argue over with modern (post year 2000) facilities.

But like someone else said, dinosaurs went out of business eons ago.

100% of ethanol burned this year grows back next year. Literally.

In a world without oil, we could continue making ethanol by making 75% more of it and using some for transport.

It does not all need to come from corn. Any starch. Any sugar works easily. Even wood and used paper works. But it's more difficult.

And there are other bio fuels.
Bio-Butanol is closer to gasoline in miles per gallon. Methanol is lower than ethanol but you could use it.
Also bio-diesel. Plant based oils work about as well as dino-diesel.

I believe in an "all of the above" approach.

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